Trendy Foods is a retail wholesaler active in Belgium and Luxembourg, supplying major chains like Delhaize. The company had 500 kWc of solar capacity, but half of it was going to waste. Self-consumption was only around 48%, meaning a large share of the energy Trendy Foods produced was being curtailed or exported at low value. At the same time, the site's 60 EV charging points, heat pumps, and air conditioning were running disconnected from real-time energy production.
With the WISE. Brain, we helped Trendy Foods tap into the power of peak shaving: shifting consumption toward the hours when solar panels produce the most energy. In practice, this meant programming EV chargers to recharge during peak production hours, and pre-conditioning offices closer to those same hours.
We estimate the short term gain at +7-8% self-consumption, meaning more than 5TCO2e avoided and the equivalent of one month of free electricity.
Trendy Foods' offices run on a large rooftop solar installation of 500 kWc, but self-consumption was only around 48%. Half of that production was either exported at low value or curtailed.
At the same time, two major loads were running on their own schedules, disconnected from solar energy production:
• 60 EV charging points, which charged cars as soon as they were plugged in rather than when more solar energy was available. This meant cars were often fully charged long before employees needed to drive again.
• Heat pumps and air conditioning, which cooled and heated the offices on a fixed schedule, often early in the morning, well before solar production peaked and before people arrived at work.
As a result, Trendy Foods was wasting its own energy surplus on one side, while buying energy from the grid at less favorable moments on the other.
Any load with some flexibility in when it runs can become a flexibility asset. At Trendy Foods' offices, we identified three assets with flexibility potential: EV chargers, heat pumps, and air conditioning.
• EV chargers: charging sessions now shift to align with peak solar hours (around midday), instead of starting as soon as the car is plugged in (around 9 AM).
• Heat pumps and air conditioning have been identified as a second flexibility lever, to be activated in a next phase.
• EV tickets: for every kilometer recharged on-site, oil companies are required to pay Trendy Foods a set amount, as part of a temporary subsidy.
Throughout this process, we keep employee comfort in mind. The WISE. Brain automatically adjusts to HR policies, so comfort levels stay the same and only the timing of energy use shifts.
By shifting the main energy loads closer to solar production hours, Trendy Foods is estimated to reach the following results:
• +7% to +8% total self-consumption gain
• More than 5TCO₂e avoided per year
• 6K€ in estimated annual financial gains from increased self-consumption alone (before accounting for the added value of peak shaving itself) + €8,000 to €10,000 in additional revenue generated through EV tickets
Beyond the numbers, this project makes a broader point: retail sites are often overlooked in conversations about the energy transition, which tend to focus on industry. But as a key supplier, Trendy Foods shows how much impact a retail site can have on Scope 3 emissions. Even a 1% improvement carries real weight, given the volumes involved.
This project also prepares Trendy Foods for further electrification. With better energy intelligence in place, the company is now better positioned to plan future steps, like expanding its EV fleet or installing batteries, with a clear view of what the grid and its solar production can support.
total self-consumption gain
GHG emissions avoided per year
estimated yearly financial gains.
A second phase will extend peak shaving to the building's heat pumps and air conditioning, shifting pre-conditioning from around 5 AM to closer to 8 AM, when solar production is actually ramping up. Early estimates point to a further improvement in self-consumption on top of what's already been achieved, though this will only be confirmed once implemented.
With better energy intelligence now in place, Trendy Foods is also well positioned to plan its next steps, such as expanding its EV fleet or adding battery storage, with a clear view of what the grid and its solar production can support.
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